Procurement Capability Assessment tour takes the high road
27 January 2010
The Procurement Capability Assessment (PCA) tour of Scotland is nearing its end with 30 PCAs completed to date. In a tour which has taken us all over Scotland - from the Cairngorms National Park Authority in the snowy highlands, to Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park Authority - we have visited a diverse range of Central Government organisations with differing procurement needs and capability.
We would like to thank all those organisations who have taken part, giving us their valuable time and co-operation. The feedback has been constructive - many organisations found it useful to go through such a structured process which helped them to identify ways to improve their procurement activity. These assessments will help CGCoPE to prepare an action plan which will determine the priorities of the Best Practice 'work-streams'.
Some common themes have emerged including:
- Some organisations do not have an overall procurement strategy
- Visits have proved a really good opportunity to discuss procurement issues and update organisations on systems and tools
- How organisations approach the supply chain is an area for improvement
- There is an inconsistent approach to market and how organisations interact with the supply chain
- The Public Contracts Portal is becoming more frequently used, especially new tools such as 'Quick Quote'
- There is a need for further training and toolkits for delegated purchasers who are not procurement professionals
- Post Contract Award and Supplier Management can be inconsistent and is often delegated to the internal 'owner' with no ongoing procurement involvement until contract is re-let, or project completed
- Some organisations do not have central contract logs - although BPIs have helped to bring these together
- CGCoPE needs to ensure our communications are targeted to increase uptake on collaborative contracts
Following on from the PCAs, organisations should be developing their own procurement action plan taking into account the PCA feedback and focusing on areas for improvement.
For further information or guidance, please contact:
Bill Smith
Head of Procurement Development
CGCoPE
0131 244 7172
bill.smith@scotland.gsi.gov.uk